ECC Hires Melinda McGuire as Finance Director
The Eastern Carolina Council of Governments takes great pleasure in announcing the appointment of Melinda McGuire as Finance Director, effective August 15, 2022.
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Rebecca Badgett Adds Grants Management Expertise To School Faculty Ranks
Badgett will provide critical advising for local governments on grants management with a focus on the federal Uniform Guidance Administrative Requirements. This work will include assisting local governments in establishing financial and internal controls, policies, and procedures to manage grant funds in compliance with federal, state, and local laws and regulations. She will also help units identify federal and state grant opportunities. Read more here.
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RISE Eastern Carolina Stakeholders Partners Meeting – Wed., Aug. 3rd
The next meeting of the Eastern Carolina Stakeholder Partnership for the Regional Resilience Portfolios project will be held Wednesday, August 3rd, from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. RISE (which stands for “Regions Innovating for Strong Economies and Environment”) aims to support resilience primarily in the storm-impacted regions of North Carolina. To sign-up for the Regional Stakeholder Partnership, visit https://forms.office.com/g/2TrZQfCLzf.
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ECC To Begin Work On 2022 CEDS Update Soon
Eastern Carolina Council serves as the Economic Development District for the U.S. Economic Development Administration in the nine-county region. One of the functions ECC carries out as part of that role is to create the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) for the region.
The Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) is a plan for regional economic development. It provides a strategic blueprint that defines the regional economic vision and coordinates efforts to achieve the vision. The plan addresses critical issues that impact the region and provides a foundation by which the public sector, working in conjunction with other economic actors (individuals, firms, industries), creates the environment for regional economic prosperity. The CEDS is a 5-year plan that emerges from a broad-based continuous planning process addressing the economic opportunities and constraints of a region.
The guidelines for developing a CEDS include effective general planning practices that can be used by any community to design and implement a plan to guide its economic growth. CEDS updates are completed periodically to reflect implementation and changes to the regional economy.
The 2022 CEDS update is due December, and ECC will begin this process soon.
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After 2 long years, our Community Advisory Committees (CACs) are finally able to return to visiting long-term care facilities and all normal committee activities. All counties within our region are in need Community Advisory Committee (CAC) volunteers. If you or someone you know is interested in serving on the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) in your county, please contact Angelia Pridgen or Colby Smith at 252-638-3185. |
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Eastern Carolina Council Area Agency on Aging (ECCAAA), New Bern Fire Department, and the New Bern Police Department have partnered together to bring the Project Lifesaver Program to New Bern, NC. Agencies are currently working together to develop the program and pilot it over the next year.
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Eastern North Carolina regional NC Senior Tar Heel delegates met at ECCAAA on July 6, 2022, discuss their legislative priorities that they will be submitting to the Senior Tar Heel Legislation. The NCSTHL General Session will be held in Raleigh on October 3, 2022, to vote to approve three to five top legislative priorities that have been submitted and reviewed for submission to the NC General Assembly.
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Jelly Drops Come to Eastern North Carolina
ECCAA staff will be distributing Jelly Drops throughout the region to Family Caregiver Support providers to educate clients on an innovated hydration intake method. Jelly drops assist people with dementia, the elderly, and others who are struggling to stay hydrated. With an eye-catching colorful design and a teardrop shape that makes them easy to handle, the bite-sized candy has a solid, yet smooth, texture that encourages independent hydration in those who may not realize they are thirsty or otherwise may require assistance to drink. For further information on the benefits and to order visit: https://www.jellydrops.us/
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Transportation News
With new revenue for transportation being provided by the new budget via the sales tax, the draft State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) that was released in May will be updated in the next few weeks. With this update, the deadline for any potential swaps for the STIP has been pushed back to March 17, 2023. We anticipate any decision on swaps to be taken at our November meetings.
The first steering committee meeting for the Carteret County CTP will take place on August 10 at 3pm via Microsoft Teams.
The Craven County CTP is in the adoption phase and NCDOT Transportation Planning will soon begin scheduling meetings with all relevant parties to approve the CTP.
DERPO is participating in the Morehead City Comprehensive Plan, especially the transportation component of the plan. A steering committee meeting on the plan’s vision took place in July. DERPO will serve a key role in coordinating the work on the Morehead City Plan with the Carteret CTP.
DERPO, in coordination with NCDOT, installed pedestrian counters in the Town of Beaufort to collect data that will be used to improve signage at the two crosswalks.
DERPO & ECRPO are going to begin meetings with our local governments to identify transportation needs. The goal is to meet with every local government in the region. If you would like to schedule a time for your local officials to meet with your RPO representative please contact us.
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On-Demand Ethics For Local Elected Officials
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Collaboration Opportunities |
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Street Counters Available Through ECC
If any local government would like traffic or pedestrian counts for a particular roadway/intersection, ECC has the counter equipment to do so. (ECC recently assisted NCDOT with these counters to gather data about pedestrian counts at a key intersection.) Contact BJ Eversole or Mickey Anderson if your community is interested.
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OPPORTUNITY FOR RURAL COMMUNITIES TO HOST A Golden LEAF SCHOLAR AS INTERN IN 2023
This year, Golden LEAF launched the Rural Internship Initiative to provide Golden LEAF Scholars attending a college or university in North Carolina with professional work experience related to their career field in a rural North Carolina community. Students are able to intern in a wide range of settings, including businesses, governmental entities, and nonprofits. Golden LEAF funds the interns through a temporary staffing agency, but it is up to each site to manage and supervise the intern.
Golden LEAF Scholars are responsible for identifying a site to complete their internship. To support this process, Golden LEAF is gathering information from entities who are interested in hosting an intern next summer (summer 2023).
This list of interested sites will be shared with Scholars beginning in late summer 2022 as a resource to locate internship sites. Students will be responsible for reaching out to sites from this list. Golden LEAF anticipates a process later in the summer for interested student information to be shared with sites.
If you have any questions, please contact Arlena Ratliff, Golden LEAF Scholarship Program Manager at aratliff@goldenleaf.org.
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Golden Leaf’s Site Grant Program Can Help to Identify and Develop Econ. Dev. Sites
The Golden LEAF Foundation is excited to announce the next round of the SITE Program is now open! This program is open to governmental entities and 501(c)(3) nonprofits to apply for funding to support identification, due diligence, and development of sites to attract new businesses and create opportunities for existing businesses to expand.
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Golden Leaf Will Hold a Webinar Money Aug. 1 at 2 pm
Click here to register. Applications are due on September 19 at noon for consideration by the Golden LEAF Board in December 2022. Golden LEAF will announce another round later this year for consideration in June 2023.
Golden LEAF created the SITE Program with a three-phased approach. Communities will be able to begin the process at any of the three phases, and a site may progress from identification through to development over time. For more information about the program, including a guide to which phase may be right for your project, please visit the Golden LEAF website.
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American Rescue Plan Act Compliance - Audit Preparation Recommendations
Leading into the new budget year, jurisdictions that have received their first tranche of funding through the American Rescue Plan Act are required to submit an ARPA specific audit report. This report will verify compliance with the Final Rule issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury. Recommended steps for compliance audit preparation include:
- Ensure that all policies and resolutions have been adopted prior to the obligation of funds.
- Ensure that all ARPA documents are effectively maintained, stored, and organized.
- Join the upcoming University of North Carolina School of Government Regular ARP/CSLFRF Office Hours. (Zoom information, dates, and topics are included below.)
- Ask questions! ECC is here to assist you in finding answers to your ARPA questions. As guidance develops, ECC will continue to apprise you of updates and recommendations.
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New ARP/CSLFRF Capital Project Course on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 – Register Now – In partnership with the Regional Association of Councils of Government, the UNC School of Government is holding a new ARP/CSLFRF course on August 10th. It will focus on all the substantive and process requirements when using ARP/CSLFRF monies directly to fund a capital project. Using a water project as an example, SOG faculty will walk through the process and all the detailed requirements from A to Z, highlighting common issues and providing detailed sample documents. The course will be offered live via Zoom on August 10th. The SOG will also make recordings of the course available for free on demand shortly after the live version. Participants must register for the live or on-demand versions of the course. Registration is open now.
From A to Z: Using American Rescue Plan Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (ARP/CSLFRF) to Directly Fund a Capital Project
When: August 10, 2022 (live version; on-demand recordings will be available
within a few weeks after the live course)
Time: 8:00am-5:00pm (with periodic breaks)
Format: Zoom (link will be provided after registration)
Cost: FREE
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SOG’s Regular ARP Office Hours – The following is the schedule of regular ARP Office Hours through August 2022:
- Thursday, August 4, at 8:30 am (subawards)
- Friday, August 12, at 12:00 pm
- Thursday, August 18, at 12:00 pm
- Wednesday, August 24, at 8:30 am
The Zoom link for all sessions is:
Meeting ID: 919 0699 8701
Passcode: 912104
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Eastern Carolina Council of Governments (ECCOG) would love to share your news with the Region. Email your stories to eccadmin@eccog.org. |
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ECC Executive Committee
August 11, 2022, at 6:00 p.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
ECRPO - Transportation Coordination Committee & Transportation Advisory Committee
August 18, 2022, at 9:30 a.m.
Location: TBD
DERPO - Transportation Coordination Committee
August 23, 2022, at 10:00 a.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
DERPO - Transportation
Advisory Committee
August 30, 2022, at 10:00 a.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
ECC General Membership Board
September 8, 2022, at 6:00 p.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
Regional Aging Advisory Committee
October 10, 2022, at 10:00 a.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
Senior Tarheel Legislature
October 10, 2022, at 11:00 a.m.
3rd Floor Conference Room at ECC
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